Auckland mayoral candidate Kerrin Leoni has unveiled her transport policy plan. Photo: RNZ / Jessica Hopkins
An Auckland mayoral candidate is putting her weight behind a campaign to get train services to Kumeū-Huapai in Auckland's North-West.
Challenger to incumbent mayor Wayne Brown Auckland Councillor Kerrin Leoni unveiled her transport policy plan at Waitematā Station on Thursday morning.
Speaking to the media, she said Wayne Brown did not have a clear vision to improve the city's public transport.
"Every morning, thousands of Aucklanders sit in traffic, wondering if anyone will ever actually fix our transport problems.
"Wayne Brown promised to fix it. Three years later, we've had endless weekend rail shutdowns, cancelled bus routes, and AT spending $147,000 on social media influencers while your train doesn't show up.
"Where's the strategy to cut journey times? Where's the connection to our growing communities? Perth built their airport rail in three years - we can't even get a plan.
"While Sydney guarantees travel times, Brown's big ideas are complaining about Wellington, counting traffic cones, and tinkering with traffic lights."
The $50 public transport fare cap, introduced by Auckland Transport in 2024, had not been properly promoted, she said.
Leoni said she might consider lowering the fare cap.
"We've had a lot of feedback from students that the $50 cap is not cheap enough. But I don't believe we would be able to achieve that right now based on our current budgets. But I'd look at that in the future.
"The real issue we have now is that whilst I've been out campaigning, no one is aware we have a $50 cap. We need to get that messaging out to Aucklanders better."
She also committed to negotiating with KiwiRail to stop rail network closures on weekends, but when probed conceded that disruption would become less frequent once the City Rail Link (CRL) had opened.
"There have been a number of shutdowns with the building of the CRL. The plans to address that are definitely there.
"But I believe it's not acceptable, the number of shutdowns we have had. Some of them have been necessary, but we need to get the message out to Aucklanders that there is a clear plan, that there will be fewer shutdowns in the future."
Kerrin Leoni with Paul Miller from the Public Transport Users Association. Photo: RNZ / Jessica Hopkins
Councillor Leoni was joined by Paul Miller from the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA), who stepped in to answer some media questions about Leoni's policies.
He said the PTUA had long advocated for restoring Kumeū-Huapai's passenger rail connection, and it was great to have a mayoral candidate on board.
The city's Western Line stops at Swanson, and a planned busway to ease commuter congestion is 10 years away.
Since a trial ended in 2010, only trains transporting goods used the rail line through to Huapai.
Miller said they had a private funder willing to help fund regular train services, every 20 minutes during peak hours, and every hour off-peak.
"A substantial development group that has holdings in West Auckland has said that they would commit to helping to fund a rail service to connect to the end of the existing rail line.
"There's huge community support for it. It's a one-lane road in each direction, and you can't add buses to avoid that.
"We need something in the short-term, and that's what Kerrin's policy is."
The Mayor has been approached for comment.
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